


After-School Escalation & Negotiation

by Alexilulu



Series: Stealing Each Other's Hearts [4]
Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: I finally had a legit reason to use the full tag for all 4 of them, Knifeplay, Multi, now that they're done being aggressively hot @ each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 13:19:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11556024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alexilulu/pseuds/Alexilulu
Summary: Not ones to take a defeat lying down, Akira and Ann strike back at Makoto and Ryuji.





	After-School Escalation & Negotiation

Ryuji and Makoto have become creatures of habit in their relationship together; they train as often as Makoto’s schedule allows them to, jogging mostly but with Ryuji’s newfound role at the gym they have access to thick enough mats that getting thrown around by his girlfriend doesn’t hurt much more than Ryuji’s ego (and even then, there’s far more awe than jealousy or hurt). They usually eat something light on the way to Makoto’s place, often using the trip home as part of their jogging route. If Sae isn’t home (an increasingly common occurrence as she sets up her defense attorney practice in earnest), Ryuji stays the night. Based on Ann’s observations, he’s keeping a spare uniform at her place. And tonight is just another night to them; gym, jog, eat, wash up, bed.

Ann pushes off the lamp post she’s leaning on, dressed unusually for her in baggy sweats and a nondescript grey hoodie with the hood pulled up and a baseball cap. Once Makoto and Ryuji jog inside, making small talk about their run, she pulls the hood back and brings her phone to her ear.

“They’re here. Are you ready?”

Akira shifts on the balcony of the Niijima’s apartment, pulling his gloves tight and checking the fasteners on his Thieves outfit. _Haru really spared no expense, huh…_ He taps the bluetooth headset in his ear. “Yeah. Wait a few minutes, then go.”

“I remember the plan, don’t worry. I’m delivering some important documents Sae overnighted to herself for something or other, I’ll say something really official sounding and they’re sure to buy it.”

“Perfect. You’ve got this, babe. I’m counting on you.”

“Same to you, honey. Let’s do this.”

* * *

 

“O-oh.” Ryuji is inches from Makoto, who just finished closing the door into their apartment.

“Hey.” He leans closer, smirking. “Good job out there.”

“Y-yeah.” She blushes but continues to meet his gaze, but finds she can’t help but let her peripheral vision trail down to the definition of his muscles visible under his sweat-soaked tank top.

“Oh, See something you like?” He’s leaning on the door with one arm, flexing his other arm at his side. Makoto laughs nervously, and meets his gaze again, nodding. “Yeah, me too.” He leans down and kisses her neck above her pulse, smiling inwardly to himself when she shudders under his lips. She leans into it, taking his free hand in her own and squeezing hard enough to cause a twinge of pain. Taking this as encouragement, he kisses his way up her neck before pulling his hand free and ripping his tank top off, dropping it at his feet. He’s breathing hard, and so is she, but she grabs his hand when he reaches for the hem of her shirt.

“Wait, nu uh. I’m gross, I’m showering first.” Ryuji scowls.

“Oh come on, I don’t give a shit and you know it.”

“Yeah, I noticed, but I do give a shit, so it’s time to take a break.” She squeezes his hand more gently and sidesteps him. “You can have the bath after I’m done with it.”

“Ugh, fiiiine. I’ll order some dinner, I guess. Noodles okay?” Makoto gives him a thumbs up as she heads down the hallway and into the bathroom. Ryuji sits down on the couch, leaving his tank top where it lay next to the front door and thumbing through a food delivery app on his phone. He finishes the order and sends it, then jumps when the doorbell rings. He looks between his phone and the door twice before shaking his head in disbelief and standing. When he tries to look through the peephole, all he can see is someone in a hoodie and ballcap with their head down and a packet of documents in their hand.

“Hello? Delivery for Sae Niijima?” The doorbell rings again.

“You know what time it is, right?” Ryuji calls through the door, picking up his tank top and slipping it back on. “Who’s delivering this late at night?”

“Overnight delivery from the law office of Sakurahito and Taka, requested by Sae Niijima?”

“Oh, huh. She’s not home, but you can leave it here for her, I guess.” Ryuji unlocks and opens the door, stepping aside to let the courier in. Once the courier steps in, he closes the door. “Here, I’ll take it. Do I gotta sign something?” The packet of papers collides with Ryuji’s face at that moment, followed by the courier leaping onto his chest and knocking him to the ground. Ryuji looks stunned when he finally gets a look at the short courier’s face under the baseball cap and hood, and realizes it’s Ann.

“We meet again, Ryuji.” Ann purrs, drawing a finger down his chest slowly.

“Oh god…” He writhes under her, but her knees are pinning his arms to the floor and she’s seated right on his stomach, so his effort doesn’t get him far.

“What, did you think you’d just get away with all that stuff in the changing room?”

“Get away with _what?_ You trying to make me grope you in public, or you holding my hand until you had to get on your train?”

“WH-Shut up! Trying to break me and Akira up with your sexy shenanigans!” She rips her hood back and unzips her hoodie, revealing her replica Thieves costume.

“What the fuck? Where did you get that?”

“Don’t worry about it! Just start thinking about all the ways you’re gonna break up with Makoto, because when I’m done with you you’re not gonna want anyone but me, you little bastard!” She tosses the hoodie behind her and leans forward, burying his face in her latex bosom. Ryuji’s shouting is muffled by the new obstacle until she pulls back to let him breathe.

“Holy shit, Ann, what the fuck is with you?! We were getting you back for you and Akira fucking with us before that, that’s all! You guys started this bullshit, and now you’re breaking and entering?!”

“Excuses! You tried to break me up with Akira with your rugged manhood, and now we’re showing you whose relationship is really weak around here!” She plants a knee on his stomach as she wiggles out of her baggy sweats, revealing the rest of her catsuit.

“Oh my god, really? I don’t get any of this shit! Makoto was the one who came up with that counterattack idea, not me! Besides, you’re the one who reacted the way you did, are you really faithful to Akira if you try to get a guy to finger you in a try-on booth?” Ann gasps.

“I-that’s not the point here! I may love you, but I love Akira too! It’s equal!”

“Equal?! What the hell is with you? Love one person at a time, damn it!”

“Oh, shut up already!” Ann pounces, shoving her tongue into his mouth as he tries to rebut her with more shouting. He struggles for a moment, but finally rolls his eyes and gives up, accepting the kiss. Right when Ryuji is starting to wonder what Ann’s lung capacity is like, there’s a resounding thump from further in the apartment, followed by a loud knocking from the front door behind them. Ann pulls away, looking surprised at the door.

“Can you two keep it down! It’s late and some people go to work in the morning, damn it!” Ryuji sighs, groaning.

“Sorry, Mr. Iori! We’ll keep it down.”

“Don’t make me come over here again, okay, kid?!”

“I said we’ll keep it down, I got it!” Ryuji glares at Ann. “Great, now Mr. Iori thinks we’re fighting, and he’s gonna be weird to Makoto tomorrow. Thanks. Will you just let me get up, now?” Ann looks unbelievably mortified, and scampers off of Ryuji’s chest, sitting on the couch. When Ryuji stands, he sees Makoto clad in panties and nothing else, holding Akira in his Thieves outfit in a standing armbar in the hallway.

“Uhh.”

“Oh, so you two are done then? Great.” She pushes Akira into the room in front of her, shoving him into the couch and dusting off her hands. “Okay, I think we all need to talk.”

* * *

 

Emerging from the bathroom refreshed and naked, Makoto heads across the hall and into her own room. Digging through her underwear drawer, she removes a matching lacy set of underwear and sets it on top of the dresser, slipping the panties on. Once she’s at least covered, Akira places the tip of his knife against the small of her back.

“No sudden movements.” His voice is a low growl. Makoto freezes, hands clenching.

“…Huh. You’re still as quiet as ever, aren’t you?”

“You could say that. Walk towards your bed, then sit on it. Slowly. Even if you don’t feel the knife, it’s still there. No sudden movements.”

“Is this really what you’re going with?” She complies, sitting on the edge of her bed and showing her palms to Akira as she folds her arms across her chest to cover her breasts.

“Escalation is a fool’s game, but well…” Akira shrugs, walking up to her but remaining a foot or two away. “Besides, at least I didn’t knock you out.”

“Is Ann here too, then? Normally Ryuji would have been waiting outside the bathroom for me.” Akira nods.

“She’s got her own score to settle with him. Just like you and me. It’s lucky this worked out this way, I suppose.” He squats down in front of her. “So. How do you want to play this? Easy, or hard?”

“I have to say, I don’t really get this. You two started this whole problem, didn’t you? Why even start this? Are you two that bored with your own relationship already?” Akira’s mouth twitches.

“Shut up.”

“I have to say, Akira, you’re not showing a lot of confidence here. Aren’t you the one with the knife, trying to play dom? Show me you mean it. The thrill is proving that you’ll do it.” She crosses her legs, staring him in the eye.

Akira grits his teeth, lunging for her with his free hand first. Makoto’s hands blur from her chest, grabbing him by the wrist with one and wrenching it forward painfully. With the other, she pulls him into a punishing uppercut to his jaw, and he lands in a heap on top of her, groaning. The knife drops to her feet with a soft thump. She immediately throws him off her, picking up the knife and pitching it out of the open window behind her. Akira rolls onto his side, panting and groaning. Makoto sits down sidesaddle on his chest, sighing.

“Well, you did your best. Was that knife even sharp?”

“I blunted it…Didn’t seem sporting.” Akira wheezes out a response.

“Playing fair isn’t a thieve’s role, Akira. Though I do appreciate the effort.” She stands, dragging him to his feet and placing him in a joint hold. “C’mon, let’s go see how the two lovebirds ended up.”

* * *

 

Akira and Ann both are sitting on the couch, Ann resting her chin in her hand and Akira massaging the newly forming bruise on his jaw. Ryuji stands over them, hands in his shorts pockets, while Makoto returns to her room for something to wear. The silence is deafening as the three of them look anywhere but at each other. Ryuji eventually clears his throat, and both of the couch’s occupants flinch.

“…I still don’t get it. Why do any of this? And where the hell did you get those _fucking_ outfits?”

Ann sighs, looking at Ryuji with hurt in her eyes. “You’re so stupid sometimes, Ryuji. How hard does a girl have to throw herself at you to get through?”

“Yeah, man, come on.” Ryuji shoots Akira a death-glare, then sighs.

“Gimme a fucking break, dude. You two have each other, and we all know 3’s a crowd.” Akira and Ann look at each other, then shake their heads.

“He doesn’t get it.”

“He really doesn’t get it. Unbelievable!“ Ann throws her hands in the air and leans back on the couch. “This isn’t hard, Ryuji! The heart wants what the heart wants, get it?”

“And Thieves of Hearts get the hearts they want, right?” Makoto leans across the back of the couch, dressed into presentability in a baggy t-shirt that is definitely Ryuji’s and a pair of cotton shorts. Akira nods and points towards Makoto as she walks around the couch to join Ryuji.

“See, she gets it.”

“So.” Makoto sighs, crossing her arms. “What do we do now? This has clearly already gone too far, for obvious reasons. Why don’t we just hash this out like adults and be done with it?” Akira shrugs.

“Well, it’s clear that Ryuji doesn’t get what’s going on still, so why don’t we start there?”

“Ooh, can I do it? I think it’ll be easier for him that way.” Akira nods, so Ann stands and clears her throat. “Ryuji, we love you. Seriously, like, love you a lot. We want you to love us back.”

“…Seriously? I know we had like, a heart to heart about middle school, but…” Ryuji scratches his head.

“Yeah, I was really awful to you because I didn’t know what I wanted from you, but spending time with you as Thieves really made me realize it. And like…I love Akira, too, but that doesn’t mean I can’t love you, too. And I really like Makoto, too!” Makoto nods.

“I kind of got that when you put your tongue in my mouth in public.”

“See? This could be so easy! You love Makoto, at least it definitely seems like that, so what about us? Do you have feelings for us?” Ryuji groans, scratching his head more furiously.

“Ghhhh, yeah, I do! Akira changed my freakin’ life, how could I not? And, well, you know I never got over all that shit in middle school! There, you happy?!” Ann claps excitedly.

“See! I told you! He’s dumb, but he does care!”

“Okay, enough raggin’ on me, already! Jeez.” Ryuji sits down on the couch next to Akira, and Ann sits down to sandwich him between them, and they both lean into his shoulders and laugh. He blushes, but chuckles a little all the same.

“Right.” Makoto clears her throat. “Obviously I care deeply about Ryuji, or we wouldn’t be together. Ann…you too. I tried not to be too obvious about my crush, but we all saw how that ended. Akira…somebody’s gotta keep you in line, and Ann is clearly too taken with you to do the job properly.” Akira snorts. “So. I guess we’re in agreement? We all care about each other, and all this weird sexual advances stuff wasn’t really warranted if we’d talked about this?” The three couch occupants all nod to varying levels of enthusiasm. “Great. So, now that _that’s_ over, what do we do now?” Akira sits forward, gesturing expansively with his hands.

“We’ll have to be careful in public, of course, unless we want to start some unfortunate rumors about ourselves, but otherwise, we’re all perfectly capable of choosing who we spend our time with. So, anything within reason, really.” Makoto nods.

“Fair enough. Communication will be key, so let’s keep it transparent, okay? Jealousy festers when we aren’t honest with each other.”

“Right.”

“Yeah…”

“Naturally.”

“Great. Do any of you need anything else, or can I eat with Ryuji and go to bed now?”

“Oh…uhh. Shit, the order’s probably gonna be here any minute. Kinda got tied up with all of, you know.”

“Great.” Makoto points at Akira and Ann. “You two have 5 minutes to get out of my apartment before anyone else sees you here.”

“Man, seriously?”

“I said I’d be honest with you, so I am. You already apparently pissed off Mr. Iori next door, so thanks for that, and I don’t need any more damage to Sae’s reputation than she’s already gotten.” She claps her hands once, and Akira and Ann shoot to their feet, Ann scrambling for her discarded hoodie and sweats. A minute later, they’re gone. With that, Makoto drops onto the couch with a loud groan, eventually settling into leaning her head into the hollow of Ryuji’s shoulder. “What a mess.”

“No kidding. Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, we’re all at fault. I’m just sorry my plan exacerbated it.”

“Ehh. They woulda done it regardless of what we did, we probably just sped it up a couple months. Ann gets what she wants eventually, and Akira’s just a driven dude.”

“I suppose.”

“So. Where the hell do you think they got the outfits made?”

“Haru had them commissioned for everybody. Have you not…” She looks up at Ryuji, sees the confusion on his face, and suddenly laughs. “Nevermind. You’ll find out soon, knowing her.” The doorbell rings, and she stands, pulling Ryuji to his feet with both hands and a little application of force. “Come on, let’s eat.”

“What a weird fucking night.” Ryuji sighs, stretching.

“Could be worse, you know. You could have been alone with those two. Imagine…” Makoto giggles.

“Wh-Oh my god, you’re thinking about it, aren’t you?” He opens the door, taking the order and heads into the kitchen. Makoto follows him, blushing and still laughing occasionally.

“Well, we did agree to try the whole open relationships thing, Ryuji. Just one of the benefits, really.”

“Man…This is gonna take some getting used to.” He sits down, spreading the food across the table as Makoto sits down opposite him.

“We took some getting used to time too, it’s really no different. Just take it slow. And be nice, okay?”

“I’m always nice! Jeez.”

“Well, you do your best, at least.”

“Keep talking like that, and I’ll start being mean, and you’ll really be sorry.”

“Sorry that Ann will basically steal you forever the second you do? Mm, maybe a little. Then again, maybe I’ll have to fight her for you.” Ryuji’s eyes go wide, and a blush quickly spreads across his face.

“Oh…shit.”

“See, now you get it.”

“Do you…wanna go to bed? I’m not hungry all of a sudden.” Ryuji’s food sits in front of him uneaten. Makoto looks up from shifting her noodles around with her chopsticks.

“…Yeah. Me either.” They both immediately stand up, rushing towards the bedroom.

Neither of them got much sleep that night.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Well fam, we made it. Everybody loves everybody equally (well not really but you know how it goes), and everybody's happy. Also what's with that stuff with Haru? Who can say.


End file.
